SCAD Opens New Fashion Museum in Atlanta

ATLANTA--Atlanta now has a new museum devoted to fashion. This weekend, the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) debuts SCAD FASH, a fashion museum set in Atlanta. Situated within the SCAD Atlanta main facility, the museum will host international fashion exhibitions, films and lectures for students and the public. The museum opens to the public on Saturday, October 3, 2015 with a free public reception taking place from noon to 5 p.m.

The inaugural exhibition, “Oscar de la Renta,” celebrates the house of the late Oscar de la Renta and features garments from the mid-1960s through the present, including gowns on loan from first lady Laura Bush, dresses worn by Taylor Swift and Oprah Winfrey, and select garments by Oscar de la Renta’s new creative director Peter Copping.

The exhibition also includes the film “Ovation for Oscar,” which premiered at the Marché du Film at the Cannes Film Festival. Created by SCAD alumni and students, the short documentary provides an intimate look at the making of a major museum exhibition honoring the designer, artist and cultural icon.

The new museum will offer the opportunity to engage with one-of-a-kind garments created by the world’s leading fashion houses as well as designs from SCAD’s permanent collection which include designers Yves Saint Laurent, Oscar de la Renta and Givenchy. The collection includes over 1,000 garments.

On view at SCAD FASH.

“SCAD FASH celebrates fashion as a universal language and garments as vehicles of identity,” said SCAD President and Founder Paula Wallace. “This museum focuses on the past, present and future of fashion design, connecting conceptual to historical principles of dress, whether ceremonial, celebratory or casual, and welcomes visitors of all ages to engage with cutting-edge exhibitions, educationally enriching events, filmsand forums, guided by curricula for K-12 students and resources for graduate scholars.”

The new museum adds 10,000 square feet made up of a public gallery space, a fashion conservation lab and a media library for educational films and digital presentations. The new space joins SCAD’s existing 27,000 square feet which houses academic studio space dedicated to fashion and fashion marketing and management students.

Now one of the largest fashion museums in the United States, SCAD FASH aims to enhance and engage the visual design perspectives of students and the public.

“SCAD is an amazing university because it encourages students to design their own careers and express their own visions," said Fashion luminary Diane von Furstenberg. "As a continuation of this mission, I am confident that SCAD FASH will inspire students, and all those who visit, to inspire others in turn. It’s all about creating that cycle of empowerment.”

SCAD FASH programming is also designed to complement SCAD Museum of Art in Savannah. The art museum opened in 2011 and attracts over 40,000 visitors annually, according to the museum.

Fashion-focused tours, lectures, screenings and gallery talks will be available year-round.

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BASIC FACTS: SCAD FASH opens its doors to the public on October 3, 2015 with a free public opening from noon to 5 p.m. Immediately before, a Student Opening will be held from 10 a.m. to noon. www.scadfash.com

SCAD FASH in Atlanta is designed to complement the SCAD Museum of Art, a contemporary art museum in Savannah. www.scadmoa.org.